How Rotherham United's Ollie Rathbone's kept his discipline to escape a ban

Midfielder Ollie Rathbone has been on four cautions since the 2-1 home defeat against Bristol City in early October and one more would have incurred a one-match ban.

However, the man with the all-action style passed the 19-game cut-off point, which came in last Saturday's goalless Championship draw at Birmingham City, without going into the referees' notebook again.

Four yellow cards in 11 fixtures was followed by none for almost two months, which surprised Wayne Carlisle as much as anyone else.

“He’s done well to stay available and it’s a boost to have him still at our disposal,” said the interim manager after the Birmingham encounter. “You see his energy in there.

“When you see him running around and chasing, as long as there is a structure around it then it is infectious within the team.”

Twenty-seven-year-old Rathbone now heads into Saturday's clash at AESSEAL New York Stadium against Swansea City this weekend knowing that he has to reach double figures in bookings before being in disciplinary hot water.

Meanwhile, talks over a new contract between the player and the Millers have yet to resume.

Rathbone thought a deal was close back in August following positive discussions. However, since then proceedings have ground to a halt.

Former manager Matt Taylor revealed just before his November 13 exit that there had been no further developments.

Rathbone’s contract expires at the end of the campaign but Rotherham have an option to extend it by a further 12 months.